Silurian (Doctor Who)
Encyclopedia
The Silurians are a fiction
al race of reptile
-like humanoids
in the long-running British
science fiction television series Doctor Who
. The species first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1970 serial Doctor Who and the Silurians
. The first Silurians introduced are depicted as prehistoric and scientifically advanced sentient humanoids who predate the dawn of man
; in their fictional backstory, the Silurians went into self-induced hibernation to survive what they predicted to be a large geological upheaval caused by the Earth capturing the Moon
. The Silurians introduced in the 1970 story are broad, three-eyed land-dwellers. The 1972 serial The Sea Devils
introduced their amphibious cousins, the so-called 'Sea Devils'. The 2010 episode "The Hungry Earth
" introduced a more human-like version of the species. A taxonomical-sounding name for the species is mentioned in passing by the Doctor as "Homo Reptilia" in "The Hungry Earth". Taken at face value, this would place the species within the human genus. The terms "Silurians" and "Eocene
s" are human misnomer
s.
, a group of Silurians were awakened from hibernation
by the energy from a nearby nuclear power research centre. Although the Doctor manages to negotiate an honorable compromise with the colony's leader, he was assassinated by his own son who is intent on a far more aggressive policy. To that end, the Silurians then attempted to reclaim the planet from humanity by releasing a deadly virus and attempting to disperse the Van Allen radiation belt
. Both plans were thwarted by the Third Doctor
(Jon Pertwee
), an alien from the race known as the Time Lord
s, who was at that time stranded on Earth. Despite the Doctor's best efforts to broker a peaceful solution, the Silurians are still determined to exterminate Humanity, only to have their base destroyed by the fictional United Nations Intelligence Taskforce
on the orders of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
(Nicholas Courtney
) to preempt this open threat. In The Sea Devils (1972), an amphibious variety of Silurians were awakened from their hibernation by a renegade Time Lord known as the Master
(Roger Delgado
), who persuaded them to reclaim the planet from the human race. Despite the Doctor's efforts to convince them otherwise, the Sea Devils eventually decided to go to war, forcing the Doctor to destroy their base. It was revealed, however, that there were many colonies still in hibernation around the world. The land-based Silurians and the 'Sea Devils' next appeared, together, in Warriors of the Deep
(1984), where they attempted again to reclaim Earth from the humans. Set in the year 2084 during a prolonged "cold war
" between factions of humanity. The Sea Devils in this episode were described as being elite warriors; they sported bullet-proof samurai-style armour. The Fifth Doctor
(Peter Davison
) tries in vain to prevent any bloodshed against either species; he tells companions Tegan
(Janet Fielding
) and Turlough
(Mark Strickson
) to give the Silurians oxygen to keep them safe from the hexachromite gas he released into the base's atmosphere. The last surviving Silurian in the episode, however, is killed by Turlough, leaving the Doctor despondent.
In the 2010 two-parter "The Hungry Earth
" / "Cold Blood
", Silurians are awoken in 2020 by an underground drilling operation. These Silurians lack the third eye of their 1970-1984 counterparts, and wear masks. Having misinterpreted it as a deliberate attack on the Silurians, the Silurians take hostages, including Eleventh Doctor
(Matt Smith)'s companion Amy Pond
(Karen Gillan
). The Doctor's attempts at a peace negotiation between humans and Silurians is ruined when Alaya (Neve McIntosh
) a war hungry Silurian warrior provokes a panicked human mother (Nia Roberts
) into killing her. The Silurian leader Eldane (Stephen Moore
) recognises that humans and Silurians have the potential to reach some common ground in the future, and allows the Doctor and some of his allies to depart, leaving two humans behind with the Silurians to act as ambassadors to the human race when the Silurians re-awaken in a thousand years. In "The Pandorica Opens
", some Silurians appear in 102, A.D.
alongside alien various enemies of the Doctor (including alien Dalek
s, Sontaran
s, Nestenes
and other species) to imprison the Doctor in the mythical "Pandorica" in order, as they see it, to save the universe from him. Another Silurian called Vastra (also portrayed by McIntosh) appears in "A Good Man Goes to War
" (2011); exposition reveals she encountered the Doctor having escaped into the Victorian era London Underground and went on to become a detective with a human companion, and to kill Jack the Ripper
. The Doctor calls on her to go to war alongside him when Amy is abducted. Silurians are mentioned in the 2011 Torchwood: Miracle Day episode "The Blood Line"; Jack Harkness
(John Barrowman
) briefly muses that the Blessing (an ancient phenomenon beneath the Earth's surface) could be out of "Silurian mythology". A Silurian doctor (played by Richard Hope
) is seen attending to Winson Churchill in The Wedding of River Song
as part of an aborted timeline.
. Terrance Dicks
' adaptation of Warriors of the Deep, for example, clarified that Silurian Ichtar was a survivor of the Doctor Who and the Silurians encounter. The novelisation of Doctor Who and the Silurians adds a prologue which features the beginning of the Silurian's hibernation; the novelisation avoids referring to the reptiles as Silurians. The 1996 novel The Scales of Injustice
by Gary Russell
was written to explain a previous encounter (to 2084) with the Doctor alluded to by the Silurians in Warriors of the Deep. In Seventh Doctor
Virgin New Adventures
novel Blood Heat
(1993), Silurians of an alternate reality
have conquered Earth after the Third Doctor was killed in their initial appearance. Silurians have also made many minor appearances in Virgin New Adventures
series of novels. By the 26th century, the time of human archaeologist Bernice Summerfield
's, the term "Earth Reptile" has become popularly used to describe Silurians following their peaceful integration with human society, such as in the novel Eternity Weeps
(1997). A Silurian short story
, "Cold War", also features in the anthology Short Trips: Steel Skies
(2003).
The Silurians also make a number of appearance in comic books. In the Doctor Who Magazine
comic strip cycle "The Cybermen" (1994-1996), the cyborg race of Cybermen
discover Silurians and Sea Devils living on their own planet Mondas
during an unspecified time in the past; in Doctor Who, Mondas is Earth's former "twin planet". The strip also portrays Golgoth, a primordial humanoid reptile god-figure, who resembles a Sea Devil and may have some link to the Silurians. In the story arc "Final Genesis" (1993), an alternate universe is depicted wherein Silurians made peace with humanity and the two races live in harmony; the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce is renamed the 'United Races Intelligence Command'. Comic book
story "Twilight of the Silurians" (1980) is set during the species' last days pre-hibernation, where Silurians observe captive "apes" (Eocene era
humans) in their zoological research station. The comic book "City of Devils" (1983) features two Doctor Who companions, journalist Sarah Jane Smith
(likeness' Elisabeth Sladen
) and robot dog K-9
uncover a hidden city of Silurians (here, 'Eocenes') in an Egyptian archaeological dig, who seek peaceful coexistence with humans; this comic strip is based on the premise of failed television spin-off series K9 and Company.
Silurians also appear outside of Doctor Who-related media. A cave drawing of a Silurian and a Sea Devil appear in a cave on Mars
in a work of steampunk
fiction by D'Israeli
, Scarlet Traces: The Great Game
. Silurians and Sea Devils are referenced in the second volume of Alan Moore
's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen where they were connected to the creature
from the Black Lagoon; League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is set in a fictional universe which reconciles the exploits of all fictional characters in one continuity.
audio play Bloodtide (2001), in which the Sixth Doctor
intervenes when Charles Darwin
and the HMS Beagle
expedition encounter a rogue Silurian group in the Galápagos Islands
. The audio drama reveals that the leader of this group had been responsible for creating humanity's prehistoric ancestors via a forbidden breeding program, sabotaging the Silurian stasis chambers to escape punishment for his actions. In UNIT: The Coup
(2004), the Silurians attempt to finally make peace with the humans, though the general public believes it to be a stunt involving men in rubber suits. In UNIT: The Wasting
(2005), Silurians aid UNIT in finding a cure for a deadly plague. The audio drama The Poison Seas
(2003), from the Bernice Summerfield series of adventures, Summerfield travels to the planet Chosan sometime in the future to assist a colony of Earth Reptiles (Sea Devils) under threat there.
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
al race of reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
-like humanoids
Reptilian humanoid
Reptilian humanoids comprise a common motif in mythology, folklore, science fiction, fantasy, conspiracy theories, ufology, and cryptozoology.-Male:...
in the long-running British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. The species first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1970 serial Doctor Who and the Silurians
Doctor Who and the Silurians
Doctor Who and the Silurians is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in seven weekly parts from January 31 to March 14, 1970. The story is the first appearance of a recurring family of Earth-dwelling reptiles...
. The first Silurians introduced are depicted as prehistoric and scientifically advanced sentient humanoids who predate the dawn of man
Human evolution
Human evolution refers to the evolutionary history of the genus Homo, including the emergence of Homo sapiens as a distinct species and as a unique category of hominids and mammals...
; in their fictional backstory, the Silurians went into self-induced hibernation to survive what they predicted to be a large geological upheaval caused by the Earth capturing the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
. The Silurians introduced in the 1970 story are broad, three-eyed land-dwellers. The 1972 serial The Sea Devils
The Sea Devils
The Sea Devils is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from February 26 to April 1, 1972.-Synopsis:...
introduced their amphibious cousins, the so-called 'Sea Devils'. The 2010 episode "The Hungry Earth
The Hungry Earth
"The Hungry Earth" is the eighth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 22 May 2010 on BBC One. It was written by Chris Chibnall, who had previously written for Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood...
" introduced a more human-like version of the species. A taxonomical-sounding name for the species is mentioned in passing by the Doctor as "Homo Reptilia" in "The Hungry Earth". Taken at face value, this would place the species within the human genus. The terms "Silurians" and "Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
s" are human misnomer
Misnomer
A misnomer is a term which suggests an interpretation that is known to be untrue. Such incorrect terms sometimes derive their names because of the form, action, or origin of the subject becoming named popularly or widely referenced—long before their true natures were known.- Sources of misnomers...
s.
Television
In their first appearance in Doctor Who and the SiluriansDoctor Who and the Silurians
Doctor Who and the Silurians is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in seven weekly parts from January 31 to March 14, 1970. The story is the first appearance of a recurring family of Earth-dwelling reptiles...
, a group of Silurians were awakened from hibernation
Suspended animation
Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold can be used to precipitate the slowing of an individual's functions; use...
by the energy from a nearby nuclear power research centre. Although the Doctor manages to negotiate an honorable compromise with the colony's leader, he was assassinated by his own son who is intent on a far more aggressive policy. To that end, the Silurians then attempted to reclaim the planet from humanity by releasing a deadly virus and attempting to disperse the Van Allen radiation belt
Van Allen radiation belt
The Van Allen radiation belt is a torus of energetic charged particles around Earth, which is held in place by Earth's magnetic field. It is believed that most of the particles that form the belts come from solar wind, and other particles by cosmic rays. It is named after its discoverer, James...
. Both plans were thwarted by the Third Doctor
Third Doctor
The Third Doctor is the third incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee....
(Jon Pertwee
Jon Pertwee
John Devon Roland Pertwee , was an English actor. Pertwee is best known for his role in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, in which he played the third incarnation of the Doctor from 1970 to 1974, and as the title character in the series Worzel Gummidge...
), an alien from the race known as the Time Lord
Time Lord
The Time Lords are an ancient extraterrestrial race and civilization of humanoids in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' eponymous protagonist, the Doctor, is a member...
s, who was at that time stranded on Earth. Despite the Doctor's best efforts to broker a peaceful solution, the Silurians are still determined to exterminate Humanity, only to have their base destroyed by the fictional United Nations Intelligence Taskforce
United Nations Intelligence Taskforce
UNIT is a fictional military organisation from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures...
on the orders of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Brigadier Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, generally referred to simply as the Brigadier, is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, played by Nicholas Courtney...
(Nicholas Courtney
Nicholas Courtney
William Nicholas Stone Courtney was an English television actor, most famous for playing Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who.-Early life:...
) to preempt this open threat. In The Sea Devils (1972), an amphibious variety of Silurians were awakened from their hibernation by a renegade Time Lord known as the Master
Master (Doctor Who)
The Master is a recurring character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is a renegade Time Lord and the archenemy of the Doctor....
(Roger Delgado
Roger Delgado
Roger Caesar Marius Bernard de Delgado Torres Castillo Roberto was an English actor, best known for his role as the first Master in Doctor Who....
), who persuaded them to reclaim the planet from the human race. Despite the Doctor's efforts to convince them otherwise, the Sea Devils eventually decided to go to war, forcing the Doctor to destroy their base. It was revealed, however, that there were many colonies still in hibernation around the world. The land-based Silurians and the 'Sea Devils' next appeared, together, in Warriors of the Deep
Warriors of the Deep
Warriors of the Deep is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was broadcast in four twice-weekly parts from 5 January to 13 January 1984...
(1984), where they attempted again to reclaim Earth from the humans. Set in the year 2084 during a prolonged "cold war
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
" between factions of humanity. The Sea Devils in this episode were described as being elite warriors; they sported bullet-proof samurai-style armour. The Fifth Doctor
Fifth Doctor
The Fifth Doctor is the fifth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He is portrayed by Peter Davison....
(Peter Davison
Peter Davison
Peter Davison is a British actor, best known for his roles as Tristan Farnon in the television version of James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small and the fifth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, which he played from 1982 to 1984.-Early life:Davison was born Peter Moffett in Streatham,...
) tries in vain to prevent any bloodshed against either species; he tells companions Tegan
Tegan Jovanka
Tegan Jovanka is a fictional character played by Janet Fielding in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. An Australian airline stewardess and a native of Brisbane who was a companion of the Fourth and Fifth Doctors, she was a regular in the programme from 1981 to...
(Janet Fielding
Janet Fielding
Janet Fielding is an Australian actress, known for her role in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who as Tegan Jovanka, a companion of the Fourth Doctor, played by Tom Baker, and the Fifth Doctor, played by Peter Davison. She was born in Brisbane...
) and Turlough
Vislor Turlough
Vislor Turlough is a fictional character played by Mark Strickson in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He was a companion of the Fifth Doctor, being a regular in the programme from 1983 to 1984.-Character history:...
(Mark Strickson
Mark Strickson
Mark Strickson is a British TV producer and actor best known for his acting role as the character of Vislor Turlough on the television series Doctor Who.Strickson was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England...
) to give the Silurians oxygen to keep them safe from the hexachromite gas he released into the base's atmosphere. The last surviving Silurian in the episode, however, is killed by Turlough, leaving the Doctor despondent.
In the 2010 two-parter "The Hungry Earth
The Hungry Earth
"The Hungry Earth" is the eighth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 22 May 2010 on BBC One. It was written by Chris Chibnall, who had previously written for Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood...
" / "Cold Blood
Cold Blood (Doctor Who)
"Cold Blood" is the ninth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was broadcast on Saturday 29 May 2010...
", Silurians are awoken in 2020 by an underground drilling operation. These Silurians lack the third eye of their 1970-1984 counterparts, and wear masks. Having misinterpreted it as a deliberate attack on the Silurians, the Silurians take hostages, including Eleventh Doctor
Eleventh Doctor
The Eleventh Doctor is the eleventh incarnation of the protagonist of the BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. Matt Smith plays this incarnation, replacing David Tennant's Tenth Doctor in the 2010 episode "The End of Time, Part Two"...
(Matt Smith)'s companion Amy Pond
Amy Pond
Amelia Jessica 'Amy' Pond is a fictional character portrayed by Karen Gillan in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
(Karen Gillan
Karen Gillan
Karen Sheila Gillan is a Scottish actress and former model who is best known for her current portrayal of Amy Pond in the British science fiction series Doctor Who.-Early life:...
). The Doctor's attempts at a peace negotiation between humans and Silurians is ruined when Alaya (Neve McIntosh
Neve McIntosh
-Early life:Born in Paisley, Neve McIntosh grew up in Edinburgh, where she attended Boroughmuir High School. She moved to Glasgow to attend the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, after which she was in repertory companies at Perth and at The Little Theatre on the Isle of Mull.-Theatre:She...
) a war hungry Silurian warrior provokes a panicked human mother (Nia Roberts
Nia Roberts (actor)
Nia Roberts , is a Welsh actress.-Biography:The youngest of three girls, Roberts was born and brought up in Brecon, Powys. Her first language is Welsh, and she attended Brecon's Welsh-medium primary school Ysgol-y-Bannau from 1975 to 1983...
) into killing her. The Silurian leader Eldane (Stephen Moore
Stephen Moore (actor)
Stephen Moore is an English actor, known for his work on British television since the 1980s. He is known for his appearances in Rock Follies and other TV series such as The Last Place on Earth, the children's series The Queen's Nose and the drama Mersey Beat and the British TV comedy series Solo,...
) recognises that humans and Silurians have the potential to reach some common ground in the future, and allows the Doctor and some of his allies to depart, leaving two humans behind with the Silurians to act as ambassadors to the human race when the Silurians re-awaken in a thousand years. In "The Pandorica Opens
The Pandorica Opens
"The Pandorica Opens" is the twelfth episode, and first in a two-part story, in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast on 19 June 2010. The Doctor's friends send him a warning; he deals with a message on a cliff, a mysterious box and a love story that...
", some Silurians appear in 102, A.D.
102
Year 102 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Ursus and Sura...
alongside alien various enemies of the Doctor (including alien Dalek
Dalek
The Daleks are a fictional extraterrestrial race of mutants from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Within the series, Daleks are cyborgs from the planet Skaro, created by the scientist Davros during the final years of a thousand-year war against the Thals...
s, Sontaran
Sontaran
The Sontarans are a fictional extraterrestrial race of humanoids from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and also seen in spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures. They were created by writer Robert Holmes.-Culture:...
s, Nestenes
Auton
The Autons are an artificial life form from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and adversaries of the Doctor. First appearing in Jon Pertwee's first serial as the Doctor, Spearhead from Space in 1970, they were the first monsters on the show to be presented in colour.Autons...
and other species) to imprison the Doctor in the mythical "Pandorica" in order, as they see it, to save the universe from him. Another Silurian called Vastra (also portrayed by McIntosh) appears in "A Good Man Goes to War
A Good Man Goes to War
"A Good Man Goes to War" is the seventh episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 4 June 2011...
" (2011); exposition reveals she encountered the Doctor having escaped into the Victorian era London Underground and went on to become a detective with a human companion, and to kill Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper
"Jack the Ripper" is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The name originated in a letter, written by someone claiming to be the murderer, that was disseminated in the...
. The Doctor calls on her to go to war alongside him when Amy is abducted. Silurians are mentioned in the 2011 Torchwood: Miracle Day episode "The Blood Line"; Jack Harkness
Jack Harkness
Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. He first appeared in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and reappeared in the remaining episodes of the 2005 series as a companion of the ninth incarnation of the...
(John Barrowman
John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman is a Scottish-American singer, actor, dancer, musical theatre performer and media personality. Born in Glasgow yet growing up in Illinois after his family emigrated to the United States when he was eight years old, Barrowman was encouraged to further his love for music and...
) briefly muses that the Blessing (an ancient phenomenon beneath the Earth's surface) could be out of "Silurian mythology". A Silurian doctor (played by Richard Hope
Richard Hope (actor)
Richard Hope is a British actor.-Career:Born in Kettering and brought up in Norfolk, Mr. Hope attended Oakham School in Rutland from 1967–1971 and trained at the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain from 1972 - 1976. He is a member of the National Youth Theatre Association and an Associate...
) is seen attending to Winson Churchill in The Wedding of River Song
The Wedding of River Song
"The Wedding of River Song" is the thirteenth and final episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One, BBC America and Space on 1 October 2011.-Plot:...
as part of an aborted timeline.
Literature
Most Doctor Who novels try to clarify facts or expand on plot points from earlier episodes, often taking place "in between" episodes of the classic (1963-1989) series. Many of the original Silurian stories were novelisedNovelization
A novelization is a novel that is written based on some other media story form rather than as an original work.Novelizations of films usually add background material not found in the original work to flesh out the story, because novels are generally longer than screenplays...
. Terrance Dicks
Terrance Dicks
Terrance Dicks is an English writer, best known for his work in television and for writing a large number of popular children's books during the 1970s and 80s.- Early career :...
' adaptation of Warriors of the Deep, for example, clarified that Silurian Ichtar was a survivor of the Doctor Who and the Silurians encounter. The novelisation of Doctor Who and the Silurians adds a prologue which features the beginning of the Silurian's hibernation; the novelisation avoids referring to the reptiles as Silurians. The 1996 novel The Scales of Injustice
The Scales of Injustice
The Scales of Injustice is a Virgin Missing Adventures original novel written by Gary Russell based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
by Gary Russell
Gary Russell
Gary James Russell is a freelance writer and former child actor. As a writer, he is best known for his work in connection with the television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs in other media...
was written to explain a previous encounter (to 2084) with the Doctor alluded to by the Silurians in Warriors of the Deep. In Seventh Doctor
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is the seventh incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the actor Sylvester McCoy....
Virgin New Adventures
Virgin New Adventures
The Virgin New Adventures were a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who...
novel Blood Heat
Blood Heat
Blood Heat is an original novel written by Jim Mortimore and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Bernice. A prelude to the novel, also penned by Mortimore, appeared in Doctor Who Magazine #205...
(1993), Silurians of an alternate reality
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
have conquered Earth after the Third Doctor was killed in their initial appearance. Silurians have also made many minor appearances in Virgin New Adventures
Virgin New Adventures
The Virgin New Adventures were a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who...
series of novels. By the 26th century, the time of human archaeologist Bernice Summerfield
Bernice Summerfield
Bernice Surprise Summerfield is a fictional character created by author Paul Cornell as a new companion of the Seventh Doctor in Virgin Publishing's range of original full-length Doctor Who novels, the New Adventures...
's, the term "Earth Reptile" has become popularly used to describe Silurians following their peaceful integration with human society, such as in the novel Eternity Weeps
Eternity Weeps
Eternity Weeps is an original novel written by Jim Mortimore and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor, Chris, Bernice, Jason and Liz....
(1997). A Silurian short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
, "Cold War", also features in the anthology Short Trips: Steel Skies
Short Trips: Steel Skies
Short Trips: Steel Skies is a Big Finish original anthology edited by John Binns and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The stories are all set in enclosed and artificial environments...
(2003).
The Silurians also make a number of appearance in comic books. In the Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
comic strip cycle "The Cybermen" (1994-1996), the cyborg race of Cybermen
Cyberman
The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs who are amongst the most persistent enemies of the Doctor in the British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. Cybermen were originally a wholly organic species of humanoids originating on Earth's twin planet Mondas that began to implant more...
discover Silurians and Sea Devils living on their own planet Mondas
Mondas (Doctor Who)
Mondas is a fictional planet in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Mondas is the homeworld of the Cybermen, a race of cyborgs....
during an unspecified time in the past; in Doctor Who, Mondas is Earth's former "twin planet". The strip also portrays Golgoth, a primordial humanoid reptile god-figure, who resembles a Sea Devil and may have some link to the Silurians. In the story arc "Final Genesis" (1993), an alternate universe is depicted wherein Silurians made peace with humanity and the two races live in harmony; the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce is renamed the 'United Races Intelligence Command'. Comic book
story "Twilight of the Silurians" (1980) is set during the species' last days pre-hibernation, where Silurians observe captive "apes" (Eocene era
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
humans) in their zoological research station. The comic book "City of Devils" (1983) features two Doctor Who companions, journalist Sarah Jane Smith
Sarah Jane Smith
Sarah Jane Smith is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Sladen in the long-running British BBC Television science-fiction series Doctor Who and its spin-offs K-9 and Company and The Sarah Jane Adventures....
(likeness' Elisabeth Sladen
Elisabeth Sladen
Elisabeth Clara Heath-Sladen was an English actress best known for her role as Sarah Jane Smith in the British television series Doctor Who. She was a regular cast member from 1973 to 1976, alongside both Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker, and reprised the role many times in subsequent decades, both on...
) and robot dog K-9
K-9 (Doctor Who)
K-9, or K9, is the name of several fictional robotic canines in the long-running British science fiction television series, Doctor Who, first appearing in 1977...
uncover a hidden city of Silurians (here, 'Eocenes') in an Egyptian archaeological dig, who seek peaceful coexistence with humans; this comic strip is based on the premise of failed television spin-off series K9 and Company.
Silurians also appear outside of Doctor Who-related media. A cave drawing of a Silurian and a Sea Devil appear in a cave on Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
in a work of steampunk
Steampunk
Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, and speculative fiction that came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s. Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used—usually Victorian era Britain or "Wild West"-era United...
fiction by D'Israeli
D'Israeli
Matt Brooker, whose work most often appears under the pseudonym D'Israeli , is a British comic artist, colorist, writer and letterer. Other pseudonyms he uses include "Molly Eyre" , for his writing, and "Harry V...
, Scarlet Traces: The Great Game
Scarlet Traces
Scarlet Traces is a comic story of the Steampunk genre, written by Ian Edginton and illustrated by D'Israeli. It was original published online before being serialised in 2002. A sequel, Scarlet Traces: The Great Game, followed in 2006....
. Silurians and Sea Devils are referenced in the second volume of Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen where they were connected to the creature
Gill-man
The Creature, sometimes referred to less ambiguously as the Gill-man, is the titular character of the 1954 black-and-white science fiction film Creature from the Black Lagoon and its two sequels Revenge of the Creature and The Creature Walks Among Us . Ricou Browning portrays the underwater...
from the Black Lagoon; League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is set in a fictional universe which reconciles the exploits of all fictional characters in one continuity.
Audio drama
Silurians also feature in the Big Finish ProductionsBig Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
audio play Bloodtide (2001), in which the Sixth Doctor
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is the sixth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Colin Baker...
intervenes when Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
and the HMS Beagle
HMS Beagle
HMS Beagle was a Cherokee-class 10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 11 May 1820 from the Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames, at a cost of £7,803. In July of that year she took part in a fleet review celebrating the coronation of King George IV of the United Kingdom in which...
expedition encounter a rogue Silurian group in the Galápagos Islands
Galápagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, west of continental Ecuador, of which they are a part.The Galápagos Islands and its surrounding waters form an Ecuadorian province, a national park, and a...
. The audio drama reveals that the leader of this group had been responsible for creating humanity's prehistoric ancestors via a forbidden breeding program, sabotaging the Silurian stasis chambers to escape punishment for his actions. In UNIT: The Coup
UNIT: The Coup
UNIT: The Coup is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It stars Nicholas Courtney reprising his role as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, the former commander of UNIT...
(2004), the Silurians attempt to finally make peace with the humans, though the general public believes it to be a stunt involving men in rubber suits. In UNIT: The Wasting
UNIT: The Wasting
UNIT: The Wasting is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It stars Nicholas Courtney reprising his role as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, the former commander of UNIT...
(2005), Silurians aid UNIT in finding a cure for a deadly plague. The audio drama The Poison Seas
The Poison Seas
The Poison Seas is a Big Finish Productions audio drama featuring Lisa Bowerman as Bernice Summerfield, a character from the spin-off media based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.- Plot :...
(2003), from the Bernice Summerfield series of adventures, Summerfield travels to the planet Chosan sometime in the future to assist a colony of Earth Reptiles (Sea Devils) under threat there.